A Change of Heart
by LysCat
Summary: All Elena wanted to do was keep her friends happy, but the guilt nipped at her. After learning that Damon slept with Rebekah, she no longer feels like she owes him anything. Instead, she heads to the Mikaelson mansion to come clean.


Title: A Change of Heart  
Author: Alysia  
Category: Elejah with other couples mentioned.  
Summary: All Elena wanted to do was keep her friends happy, but the guilt nipped at her. After learning that Damon slept with Rebekah, she no longer feels like she owes him anything. Instead, she heads to the Mikaelson mansion to come clean.  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters familiar to the Vampire Diaries.  
Author's Note: You guys have been great to me, and I appreciate all the feedback that you've given me. Now, like the rest of my Elejah stories, this will begin with a scene that happened in the show.

* * *

Refusing to give into the guilt he felt, the vampire instead decided to embrace his anger. "Maybe you should know that for maybe for once, something I did had nothing to do with you." His tone was pointed, one finger extended out in her direction, as Damon Salvatore gripped the glass in his hand.

Elena Gilbert wanted to scream. She understood that she had hurt Damon, it felt like that was all she ever did where he was concerned. Between her relationship with Stefan, or lack thereof, and her growing feelings for the older Salvatore brother…she was caught in a vicious cycle that she just couldn't get out of. Yes, she loved them both, but she was tired of loving them. She was tired of being the reason for their estrangement. And despite the instant feelings of jealousy that welled up in her when she found Rebekah (looking disheveled) at the front door with Damon…maybe it was for the best?

And just like that, Elena's resolve was set. She refused to focus on Damon's relationship, if that was what it could be considered, with Rebekah. "You should know…" she began, her eyes sweeping over the room before settling on the man in front of her, "that Esther's planning on killing her entire family. She's linked them all together with a spell. Whatever happens to one, happens to them all."

As soon as she'd freely given Esther her blood, she'd known that she made a mistake. When Elijah had asked her about her meeting with his mother, she should have told him the truth then…but she hadn't. She ignored the sting of betrayal that she'd caused, because she thought that Stefan would appreciate her sacrifice, that Damon would offer up a twisted sense of approval (that she didn't want, but felt she needed). Her thoughts and regrets plagued her, but she'd tried to ignore it, because it was for the sake of her friends and family. Looking at the vampire in front of her, she realized just how big a mistake she'd made.

Confusion was drawn on Damon's face. Why Elena seemed so grave about the news, he didn't understand. Since Klaus was introduced into their lives…he'd ruined Elena's life. "That's great! Klaus will finally be dead. We win!" he sipped from the glass in his hand.

Elena closed her eyes, feelings disbelief over his reaction. Considering that he'd just spent the night with someone included in the spell, she just assumed that he'd feel something. Yes, Klaus deserved to die, she was ready for the day that she would finally be free of him, but did the Mikaelson siblings deserve to as well?

"Why do you look like someone just shot a panda bear?" His voice was mocking. Damon admired Elena's sense of loyalty, but most often, he found her bleeding heart tiring. After running for her life, being kidnapped, having her choices taken away, her aunt dying…all of it was because of Klaus, he didn't understand why she wasn't more happy.

Elena stumbled over her words. Did she really need to repeat herself? "Because in order to kill Klaus, she has to kill all of them," she reiterated. "Including Elijah! And he doesn't deserve this!"

Her relationship, if that was a proper label for it, with Elijah was…peculiar. From the moment she met him, despite her own relationship with Stefan, she'd found the Original vampire attractive. They'd settled into a truce of sorts, and during that time, she'd gotten to know that man that always kept himself so closed off from everyone, she never divulged personal secrets that he had confessed to her. They had worked together, worked against each other, but they always seemed to gravitate back together.

Damon nearly scoffed. "And I'm supposed to care about Elijah?" He and the eldest Mikaelson sibling had no loyalty to one another what-so-ever. Damon had only tolerated the man's presence because Elena insisted upon forming an alliance with him.

One eyebrow shot up and Elena shook her head. "Shouldn't you at least care about Rebekah?" He'd seemed very interested in the attractive blonde vampire when Elena had seen them together at the door.

Sensing a case of guilt welling up inside the young woman before him, Damon stepped closer. "Two seconds ago you were pissed because she attacked you," he reminded the human. "It's a win win…" His night with Rebekah was nothing more than two people sharing a night of very thorough consensual sex, not that he owed Elena any answers.

Elena shook her head in defeat and turned away from him. There was no use looking to Damon for help. Perhaps she could turn to someone else? She was unprepared to find Damon standing before her, obviously missing his quick movements. His body was taught and his eyes were firm.

"Don't do anything to screw this up, Elena," he warned.

"Why are you doing this?"

Before the beautiful immortal could speak, another presence spoke up. "He's right you know. Klaus has to die, they all do." Klaus had done unspeakable things to all them, but compelling Stefan? It was because of him, that Stefan couldn't trust himself around Elena. As far as he was concerned, he was the reason why he was no longer with the woman he loved. He was like a ticking time bomb. If he wasn't outright causing damage, there was always his psychological warfare that he excelled at.

Damon smirked, at Elena. It wasn't very often that he and Stefan were on the same side. "See? Democracy at its best."

Elena gave the Salvatore brothers each a hard look before walking out of the mansion, brushing past Damon, forcing him to spill his drink. As soon as she was away from the infuriating two, her nerves settled a tiny bit.

She should never have helped Esther out with her spell. Elijah didn't deserve it, and Rebekah… While Elena didn't care for the blonde vampire, she couldn't deny feeling saddened for her. Rebekah had never asked for any of it, she just always seemed to place her trust in the wrong people.

When Esther explained her plan, Elena was all gung-ho to go along with it. Damon had been whispering in her ear about getting back at the man that had ruined her life. Whenever she tried to move past it, he always pulled her back in. She felt as if she owed him, her friends the final resolution…

She had no one else to turn to for help in the situation. Stefan had made his choice known. Tyler was still under Klaus' influence, so that left him out. Both Jeremy and Alaric were ready for it to all end. They wanted Klaus dead, and she knew they didn't care how that happened. Bonnie…she was born to fight against vampires and the unnatural things they brought with them. Elena briefly considered going to Caroline, but despite her growing interest in Klaus, she fought it tooth and nail. Caroline only wanted Tyler back. She didn't need to pull Caroline into yet another mess.

As she approached her car, she realized that she really had no one to turn to. She needed to find Elijah, she needed to come clean with him. Maybe they could find a way around the spell? She knew that he would be angry, betraying him again, but she couldn't hide behind her actions any longer.

The short drive to the Mikaelson mansion passed by in a blur for Elena. She'd tried to plan her words in her mind, plan out a speech, but everything she came up with sounded too rehearsed. Before she realized it, she was at the front door. On auto-pilot, she knocked on the door. Her heart began pounding as she anticipated coming face to face with Elijah.

"Oh…it's you," Rebekah sneered opening the door to find Elena on the other side.

Elena let out a deep breath and nervously pushed her hair behind her ear. "Rebekah," she greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Rebekah demanded. She was much happier when Elena was far away from her and out of her thoughts. She was still fuming at letting her guard down, only to be staked in the back. She hated that Klaus had turned his back on her, but he was family, and that was something that would be dealt with soon. The only thing that kept the brunette before her alive, was the nonsensical attraction and devotion that Elijah had for her. What was it about the girl that managed to gather the attention from so many vampires? "Tired of the Salvatore brothers already?"

"Your mother, is she here?"

Rebekah raised one eyebrow. "No, she and Finn are…off," truthfully, she had no idea what Finn was doing with their mother. Elijah seemed worried about their solitude, but Rebekah just wanted to embrace the fact that her family was back together for the first time in nine hundred years. Of all her siblings, Finn was the one that spent most time daggered; she imagined that the world they lived in currently was a shock to him.

"What about your brothers?"

Rebekah pursed her lips. "Why don't you tell me who it is you wish to speak to and I will find out if he is up to company?" She knew that there was no way the brunette would go out of her way to find Klaus, and she didn't think that Elena had even been properly introduced to Kol.

"I'm here to see Elijah," Elena told her.

Rebekah narrowed her ice blue eyes on the human before her. Even if Elena hadn't staked her, she still would have disliked her. Elena possessed the same face as Tatia and Katherine; her mannerisms were similar to Tatia's; and to Rebekah, that was a bad thing. Both Petrova women before Elena had managed to tear her family apart. The fact that Elijah, the most controlled vampire she'd ever known, was seemingly pulled apart by the mere eighteen year old brunette spoke volumes.

Moving to stand behind his sister, Elijah looked to Elena. Her heart was pounding, and by her outward appearance, he deduced that she was nervous about something. "Elena, what a…surprise," he purred out. Suspicion bit at his thoughts, but he remained as polite as ever. "Please, come in."

Looking from her brother to Elena, seeing the way the two were staring at one another, Rebekah scrunched her nose. As it often seemed to be, if they were in the same room, their attention seemed to auto-tune to the other. "Whatever," she muttered. She stalked away, refusing to give the two a parting look.

"You wish to speak to me?" Elijah asked, claiming a seat on the couch. He gestured for Elena to join him, but noticed her looking around the room. "Other than Rebekah, we are alone in the house. Whatever you need to confess will remain between us," he assured her.

Elena nodded her head and moved to sit next to him. "How did you know?" He'd said the word 'confess' not 'discuss' or any other synonym to the word speak, and she didn't try to lie her way out of the conversation.

The centuries old vampire looked away from Elena and stared out at the space before him. How was it that she was so involved in the supernatural but didn't appear to know much about vampires? Just how naïve was she? Surely she must have realized that they all possessed heightened abilities? Even the Salvatore brothers, seemingly babies compared to him, had heightened hearing and scents of smell. "Deceit is not a part of the qualities you possess, yet, last night when I asked you if I should be worried about my mother's intentions…you lied straight to my face."

Elena's eyes widened, but she looked at the man next to her. She was a grown woman, and she would accept whatever consequences because of her actions. "How…"

"Your heartbeat," Elijah answered looking back at her. "It becomes irregular and pounds in your chest when you are less than honest." He watched as she processed his answer, wondering where the current conversation would end.

"If you knew that I was lying, why did you let me? You could have just forced me to tell you the truth then." Even without compulsion, Elijah was a very charismatic person. He could gather answers without threatening bodily harm.

Elijah raised an eyebrow. He certainly wasn't prepared for that question. While he and Elena had gotten to know one another over the last year, there were still some questions that remained unasked between them. "I trusted you when you said that you would tell me about your conversation," it as one of the most emotionally vulnerable moments he had ever shared. Elena, despite their history, held more of his trust that most of his allies.

Elena's chin trembled as she considered his words. Her eyes began to sting from unshed tears. She leaned forward, her elbows rested on her knees as her hands held her face. She knew that she must have looked like a complete basket case to her companion, but she couldn't help herself. It had all gotten to be so much. She was just about to betray her friends, and confess her treachery against Elijah.

Outwardly, Elijah kept his appearance aloof. He'd gone centuries keeping his emotions and reactions controlled. He learned early on, mostly by Klaus' doing, that it was best not to let people see those emotions. Watching Elena break down in front of him, was testing his resolve. She wasn't like other teenagers, she didn't let trivial things get to her. When she allowed herself to cry, it was usually over something life altering. For that reason alone, he wanted to comfort her; but she seemingly had betrayed him, his trust, yet again. She would find no comfort from him. Before her arrival, he'd been trying to draw up a plan that would force the truth…perhaps he was not unlucky by her appearance.

"I should have died after Klaus drained me," she sobbed out, trying to wipe away her tears. "None of this would have happened, Klaus would have been long gone and my friends could finally live in peace."

"Elena…" she wasn't one to feel sorry for herself, it was unnerving him. She appeared so resolved.

"It would have been better for everyone involved," she continued on, as though she hadn't heard him.

"Yes, because your Salvatore brothers would have allowed that to happen," his tone was sarcastic. He didn't bother to mention the fact that he had also been looking for a way to keep her alive after the ritual.

He was right, Damon had even force fed her his blood to ensure that if something did happen to her, she would at least come back. "It seems as though I'm used for everyone's motives but my own. Decisions have been made for me…and I'm tired of being so weak that I can't even fight against it." She turned to look at Elijah, but he was doing his damnedest to keep his gaze away from her. She smiled sadly. "Esther wants you all back together again…dead, the way it should have been over a thousand years ago." She watched as his whipped around to look at her. It would have been amusing if the situation wasn't so dire. "She used my blood in a spell to bind all of you together, so it would be easier to kill you."

Elijah's eyes closed in defeat. Of course it would be something like that. He knew that his parents always regretted turning their children into what they had. It had been a long road, but Elijah had conquered the unending hunger and he'd tamed the beast within him. He was certain that his siblings would be able to as well, if they only tried.

And then a tidal wave of desperation and fury took over him. He could feel waves crashing in his ears, and he developed a sudden case of tunnel vision. Memories of the night he was turned welled up, and he was experiencing the same treachery he had from Tatia all over again. "And you just gave her your blood willingly?!" He roared, jumping up from his seat. He felt his control snap and his fangs jutted out, the skin around his eyes became translucent, vains becoming visible. It had been a century, at least since he'd transformed as such.

Self-preservation checked out at the door. Instead, Elena sobbed looking at the vampire before her. The normally calm and collected vampire had embraced his darkest nature and she could only cry, after all it was her actions that demanded his reaction. She jumped up as well, moving closer to the vampire. "I didn't know until after she'd taken it!" Her only concern during the meeting was getting rid of Klaus. She never once conceived the idea that Esther would want to kill all of her children. "I swear, I didn't know!" She wanted to reach out and touch him, but the fury in his eyes caused her to keep still. There was no trace of the man that she'd gotten to know in the vampire that stood before her.

"You…stupid…little girl," Elijah ground out, rushing to her form. He relished in the fear that she was emitting. He circled around her, the beast in him enjoying her reaction to him. He came to rest, behind her. "But…you're not very little, are you?" He purred, pulling her body back against his. His hands moved to her front, and he began unbuttoning the jacket that she wore. He removed the outerwear, his hands trailing over her arms.

Her eyes closed of their own violation and her body began to tremble. Yes, she was scared at what he would do; but she'd never been so aware of another person touching her body the way he was. "What are you doing?"

Elijah pushed long hair to the side and ran his nose up and down her neck. He felt her body tremble, her heart was pounding…and if he wasn't mistaken, she was just a little bit aroused. This in turn, grabbed at his interest. It had been so many years since he'd last seduced a woman into bed with the intent of feeding on her. Elena had done a bad thing, but that didn't erase the attraction he felt for her. He could take her to bed and kill her there, and she could find her demise in worse ways. "You do smell appetizing, Elena. I don't know what it is about you and your ancestors, but I've never smelt anything like it before." It was like he was called to them.

Even as he spoke of her the way one might speak about their food, Elena's eyes closed and she leaned back against his chest. He was seducing her, and what little bit of resistance she had was weaning. "You don't want to do this, Elijah."

He chuckled darkly, zeroing in her pulse point. "I don't?" He began licking it. "But I'm so good at it," he finished saying, placing a kiss on it.

"It doesn't have to be like this. I know that I messed up, but I'm here to fix it." Her voice wavered, the feeling of him tonguing her neck put her off kilter. She knew that Elijah, once he returned to his senses, would never forgive himself if he did something to her.

Elijah smirked against her neck. Elena and her deals… "See, I don't think you fully grasp the situation you're in. I'm a vampire, one of the first ones made. I could put your lap dogs to shame." Stefan and Damon had nothing on him. "I may choose to live my life differently now, but I've lived through wars and plagues and I've fought, and celebrated, and loved…and fucked."

She'd never heard an expletive sound so arousing in her life. Her belly coiled and lust exploded within. Shaking her head, she focused on the moment, "what do you want, Elijah?"

"It's exhausting being so good. I've tried being the good boy, and what do I have to show for it? Everyone seems to betray me, do they think I'm someone else? You betrayed me yet again." He kissed her neck, one hand traveled down her side, the other played with her breasts through her shirt. "What I want…is to tear you apart." Somewhere down deep he realized that this was Elena, not Tatia or Katerina…but she'd deceived him like they had. She would be the one to pay for their transgressions. "It's been a while since I've taken anyone to bed, since I've had a good fuck." He pulled her body against his, grinding his growing erection into her backside. "Tell me, Elena, have you ever let Stefan feed from you during intercourse?"

Her eyes closed again, and she felt her body betraying her. How was it she found this pleasurable? "No."

An animalistic instinct took over and he nearly purred in pleasure at her admittance. "It really does intensify it all. Both parties find an immense amount of pleasure from it." He spun her around. He didn't need to the ability to read her thoughts, her eyes betrayed everything that she was feeling. She was scared at the moment, but the arousal he smelt from her…she smelled delicious. He couldn't wait to get ahold of her. "If it makes you feel any better, your attraction is expected. I was created to better than you, faster, stronger…I am meant to draw you to me…makes it easier for me to feed."

If only he knew that her feelings ran deeper than that. She'd been around Damon and Stefan for the better part of three years, and while both were handsome, neither held a candle to the man holding her in his arms. Even Klaus, she grudgingly admitted was good-looking, but he'd never affected her like Elijah did and could.

One arm wrapped around her waist, keeping her body secure against him. His other hand settled at the base of her head and he brought her head closer to his own. "Relax, Elena. You're going to enjoy this." Without any further words, his lips crashed over hers.

When she'd thought about this, and she had, she never imagined it would happen as a form of punishment. His persistent kisses were intense and when he began licking and nibbling her bottom lip, she gasped. Using her surprise to his advantage, Elijah plunged his tongue into Elena's mouth. His hand continued to hold her head, but he noticed that she was no longer an unwilling participant. Elena brought her arms up and grabbed at his shoulders as she responded to his attention.

When Elena responded in earnest to his kisses, he moved his hand from the base of her skull and rested it on the crook of her neck. He vaguely felt the unpleasant effect from the necklace that she wore around her neck. For the second time in their acquaintance, he ripped the trinket from around her neck. By this time, they found a groove, their tongues meeting and fighting for dominance.

When Elijah wrenched his mouth away, Elena inhaled a much needed gulp of breath. His attention moved to her neck and he nibbled down to the crook of her neck. He knew that Elena was putty in his hands and he decided to use it to his advantage. He pulled her shirt down further and placed a kiss over the top of her breast before his fangs extended. He bit into her flesh there, lapping up the blood that immediately welled to the surface. His member grew impossibly hard; between the kiss, and her own physical reaction to him, and then the blood… It had never been like that before. He'd never reacted to another soul like that, nor had they done the same in return.

Her body was humming. She didn't know if it was something that Elijah was responsible for or if it was of her own violation. All she knew was that it didn't hurt when his fangs pierced her skin. She gasped out, the quick sting of pain giving way to pleasure almost immediately. Her hand moved up to the back of his neck and she started playing with the hair there. She wasn't sure how many minutes had passed since he began feeding on her, but she never bothered to fight him off.

The blood began to sooth his turbulent emotions. He expected Elena to fight him off, but she never did. She played with the hair on the back of his neck and held him to her body, he didn't even know if she realized it, but he had. He nearly groaned against her body. When her grip went limp, he forced himself to pull away.

"Really, blood play?" Rebekah asked from another room. "Does Nicklaus know that you're drinking from his doppelganger? I'm really not in the mood to watch you two fight again." Inwardly, she was impressed, she didn't think that neither her brother or Elena had it in them to do such a thing. "You know how protective he is over his-" she trailed off in mid tirade as she spotted the doppelganger passed in Elijah's arms. Blood stained his lips and his expression was one of desperation. "What the hell happened?"

"I…I lost control," he broke, looking down at the woman in his arms. He hadn't had to drink from anyone since he'd found access to blood bags, and it had to have hundreds of years since he'd nearly drained someone. "Elena came here to tell me something, and I lost myself."

She smirked at her usually collected brother. "I'm going to guess that you didn't like what she had to say?"

Elijah frowned at his sister. He knew that Elena wasn't her favorite person, but to act so cavalier about this? His sister used to be much more eloquent. It sounded like she'd been spending too much time around Damon Salvatore. "Your comments aren't appreciated," he bit out. During this time, he used his strength to scoop her into his arms. "I need to get to the hospital."

As soon as Elijah suggested the hospital, Rebekah surged forward. "You can't take her there! Are you crazy? If you get her there and her friends find out what happened, we'll have a group of trigger happy people after us."

"I took too much blood, Rebekah. Her heart…"

"Is still beating," she finished. It was faint, but it was beating. "You're a thousand year old vampire," Rebekah reminded him. "It's not like you're baby vampire and don't know the way to feed without killing someone." She hoped that Elena would be all right, because if Nicklaus found out that Elijah almost drained her, he'd be furious! "Just, take her upstairs and lay her down. She'll be okay, Elijah."

TVD~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~TVD~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~TVD~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

For the past three hours, Elijah kept to a seat near the bed that Elena occupied. Every hour, he would bite into his wrist and hold it to her mouth, hoping that she was digesting even the smallest bit. He needed it to increase the healing.

Once Elena had been settled in his room, Elijah told Rebekah about his mother's plan and Elena's involvement. _"You're an idiot, Elijah,"_ she'd told him_. "For some reason that girl would do anything for you. Do you really believe that she'd help our mother if she knew that she intended for-"_ she'd trailed off then, unable to finish her statement. Instead the two tried to come up with a plan of action, but nothing was working.

When Kol and Klaus returned home, Rebekah intercepted them. She dragged them out of the house as she explained the story that they'd pieced together since Elena's arrival. Her reason was twofold. One, She really didn't want to tell Klaus abut Elijah's behavior with Elena. Secondly, she'd hoped that they'd be able to come up with a plan.

That left Elijah alone with his thoughts. He wasn't sure what he was going to say to her when Elena woke up. Sorry, wasn't nearly good enough. From the moment that he'd met Elena, she managed to affect him in a way that he hadn't felt in a long time. He likened it to the way that Tatia made him feel, before he discovered the truth about her. It was why he reacted the way he had when he found out what she'd done. He thought he knew her better than that, and it made him question his judgment. Through the ages, there was only one person he could depend on, himself. In that moment, he'd second guessed himself, and no one had ever had the ability to make him do so.

For Elijah, it was like he'd just been through an out of body experience. He was saying those things and doing those, things, but it wasn't like it was really him. In those few minutes, his monster was ready to kill her, ready to take her to his bed and have his way with her before draining her. He remembered the words coming out of his mouth, but it didn't feel like it was _him_ saying them. Never before had he acted so deplorable with a woman, at least not with one as innocent and good as her. He let his attraction take over and he would have taken it all the way. When she began responding to him and her own lust was added to the mix…how would she ever forgive him?

"I am so sorry, Elena," he confessed in a whisper. "I don't know what I was thinking." For the first time in nine hundred years, his eyes welled up with tears. He leaned over, his head lying against her stomach as one tear, then another, spilled over. "I don't know if you can hear me…or what I can even say to make this better. If I could take it back, God, I would."

A hand came to rest in his hair and his head shot up. "I hear you," Elena confirmed, her voice hoarse.

Elijah cleared his throat, pulling himself together. He wasn't one for showing emotions. It was one thing to break down in front of an unconscious person, but awake? He'd lived so long without showing his feelings, he couldn't start it.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like crap," she answered.

He bit into his wrist and immediately brought it to her lips. Elena scrunched her nose. Despite however many times she'd given or been given blood, she still wasn't used to it. The metallic smell of it bothered her. "Please accept it, Elena. It will help the healing process."

The brunette looked from the arm in front of her to the vampire that was extending it. Elijah had managed to frighten her, but even then, she tried not to act out because of it. His beast managed to scare her, but deep down, she knew that the man didn't mean to. For that, she knew she had some unanswered questions. One side lived in the dark, and one in the light (_kind of_). With that reasoning, did that mean the beast and the man were two separate entities, or did Elijah deep down want to punish her for her actions? And after draining her like he had, she found him demonstrating more emotion upon her waking up then she'd seen since their first introduction all rolled into one.

"Do you think that we might be able to…talk?" Elena asked. Her mind was spinning and she knew that he must have still had questions as well.

"After you drink," he replied after a moment's hesitation. He watched Elena bring his wrist to her mouth. Her actions were slow and so obviously forced, but at least she was willing to cooperate with him. He'd shared his blood before, but it had been for the sake of saving or healing someone. While he had every intention of healing her, it had never felt so intimate. When Elena pulled away, he moved his arm away. Using his thumb, he wiped away the little bit of blood that remained on her lip.

"Elijah…"

"My actions today were deplorable," he began, his eyes searching hers. "It's been ages since I've acted in such a way. After I was first turned, I truly was a monster. My behavior today was similar to then. I allowed my beast to take over and…"

Elena nervously put her hair behind her ears. "I think I'm more hurt than scared," she admitted, refusing to back down from his gaze. "In the past year, I thought we became…friends, or at least something like that. I helped you when I could; I stuck up for you when my friends were ready to…"

"I'm a thousand years old, Elena, I don't need you looking out for me," he reminded her. "I've never made an illusion otherwise."

"I know. I know what you are, I understand what you are. But I also know that's not all you are," she threw back. Geez, if she wanted to deal with an asshole, she'd go back to visit Damon. "And yeah, you may not have needed my help, but that's what I do with my friends," she explained. "I guess I'm just a little surprised that you would think that I would knowingly do something to harm you…after everything that we've been through."

In an unnatural move for him, he licked his lips and ran a hand through his impeccably styled hair. "My emotions got that best of me," he admitted. When he heard a muttered 'you think,' he ignored it. "My dream for the longest time has been to be reunited with my family, and finding out that it was all going to be ripped away, by my mother no less, I lost it. I should have asked you more about it rather than jumping to conclusions. It's not my normal way of handling situations, as you well know. I know that I betrayed the trust that you had in me, and I will be forever regretful of that."

Her brows knitted together in confusion. Why was he saying it like that? As though he expected her to run off screaming and never look back? He did seduce her with the intent to kill her, but that wasn't him, was it? "You spoke about killing me," she observed. "Is that something that you feel all the time?" She frowned.

"I was in love with Tatia before she betrayed me. She…I don't know if she intentionally did it, but she lead both Niklaus and myself on. I would have done anything for her, she knew that; and still, it wasn't enough for her. She formed an attachment to my brother, and it was my bond with him that was forever shaken. And then she helped my mother with her spell to turn us. I've told you about the situation with Katerina. There'd been women since Tatia, but there was never an attachment on my side. When I met her, I let my guard down just enough for her to, I believe you would say, screw me over. In your moment of truth I couldn't help but remember them and the way that they treated me. I took all of my anger and frustration out on you."

While Elena was thankful for his discretion, she noticed that he still avoided answering her question. "And me? You want to kill me?"

"I think that we both know that if I'd wanted you dead, you'd be dead by now," he had had plenty of opportunity to do so since meeting her that first day. "If I had wanted you dead, I wouldn't have tried so hard to keep you alive." He was sure that he would have come back to himself before actually killing her.

She shook her head in understanding. "So then why did you say it?"

"There are two emotions that add fuel to the seduction of our pray; fear and…arousal." He tried to explain delicately. He wasn't embarrassed by his actions, but he was sorry that he acted that way with Elena. "Your…reaction," he reached for the word, "well, I uh, I rather enjoyed it, both of them," he finished, forcing back an amused smile.

Elena blushed and looked away from him. "Yeah…about that…" She tried to find the words to say, but her tongue was heavy. She had no illusions about the man before her, but thinking about his sexual history and actually hearing him admit to it, she felt small and insignificant. She could only imagine the women he'd surrounded himself with in the centuries passed. Compared to them, she probably wasn't even a blip on his radar.

"Elena, it's flattering," he spoke up before she could add anything else. "But I meant what I said before. Vampires are a superior race. We were made to be attractive to humans." As far as he was concerned, it was a natural reaction to the moment.

The human felt as though he was giving her an easy way out, but she wasn't going to take it. They had things that they still needed to discuss, and this was the most open that they'd ever been with each other. Sitting up, she kicked her legs to the side of the bed so that they were sitting directly across from each other. "Since we're being honest here, there's something that I want to say."

"It isn't necessary, Elena," he denied.

"I think it is," she argued. "My reaction to you today, I know that you seduced me, essentially," Elena began, knowing that if she didn't acknowledge it, he'd argue it.

"Not essentially, I did. You wouldn't have acted that way if I hadn't made the first move."

It was then or never. "Maybe not," she allowed, "but you did, and I kissed back. Maybe it's been a long time coming." Her hands reached out and in a bold move, she settled them on his thighs.

Elijah's body went rigid for a second before relaxing once again. She must still be experiencing the side effects from blood lust. He'd almost drained her just hours before, and she was willingly touching him. He was thankful for her perseverance, but shocked to say the least.

"Since our first meeting, you've…I've never felt this way about someone before. And compared to our age difference, I know I must sound like a child to you, but I know what I feel."

He remained stoic as he considered her words. He couldn't deny that Elena managed to mark him in a way that no one else had, including Tatia and Katerina. However, he was cautious, always cautious. It was a personality trait that never let him down. "And what about your boyfriend and his brother?" Elijah asked. He'd seen firsthand the way that Salvatore boys felt for her and vice versa. Feelings like that didn't just go away.

"I will always love Stefan in my own way," she admitted. "But things are different now. We've both changed, and we didn't grow together. And Damon…he's always going to be something special to me, but we always seem to disappoint one another."

Her words made him feel as if he was consolation prize, his mouth remained shut, but his eyes must have betrayed what he was thinking because she rushed to continue on. He'd also been witness of his sister's walk of shame that morning. While Rebekah didn't outright admit who she'd spent the night with, he knew. He didn't want to be with someone because she was settling.

"I'm doing a bad job of explaining myself, aren't I?" Her companion smiled sadly. He apparently thought so, but he was willing to be patient for her. "He may think that he loves me, and maybe he does in his own way, but I can't allow myself to go there with him." Part of the reason was because he was Stefan's brother, but it was so much more than that. "You've managed to captivate me. Until you entered my life, I didn't know that I could feel that way about someone." When she felt his hands rest atop her, his thumbs brushing the top of her hand, she felt encouraged to continue. "I don't know where this will go, or if it will even go anywhere, but I don't want to dance around this anymore."

She must know that he felt the same way. He didn't trust the feelings or his self, but it was there. It'd been there since the very first day. At the time, he didn't know her as anything other than the dopplegnanger, but he was intrigued. "You're crazy," he replied. Only Elena would put herself out there like that after the nightmare that was the morning.

"Maybe so, but it doesn't change my feelings."

He took her hands in his own and raised them to his lips, kissing each finger on each of her hands. "Mine neither," he admitted.

"How is this going to work?" She asked after a moment of silence. His loyalties were still tied to his family, just as hers were to her family. They were often on opposing sides, so this was bound to cause problems for everyone involved.

"One day at a time," Elijah told her, though unbeknownst to her, he was thinking over the same things. He didn't know what the future held for them, but he knew that he wasn't opposed to finding out. His feelings for the human in front of him had taken him by surprise, and he never thought he would act on them. He knew that she'd had Stefan, and Damon appeared eager to step into the role of boyfriend. He didn't think that she could ever return the feelings that he'd had and fought.

Elena smiled and leaned closer to him. "That sounds perfect," she replied. "So, we're really going to do this?" It almost seemed too good to be true. And she knew that she must have been crazy, any sane person would have left the house screaming if they endured what she had. She figured that all couples had their quirks and their own issues to work with.

"Elena, this isn't just some…affair for me," he explained. He'd had affairs, but it was never an emotional thing. He always held himself back, always remained aloof. It wasn't often that he let people in or allowed them to get to know him. After spending such a long period keeping his emotions in check, he would have train himself to let someone in.

"I never figured it was," she agreed. "You don't let people in easily, and I know that you and I still have a ways to go, but we can do that together."

He cupped her cheeks in his hands, he stared directly into her eyes, not compelling her, but to get his point across. "I genuinely feel for you, and I know that we still have obstacles that we're going to have to overcome, but I won't share you with anyone. I don't share my lovers." He'd done that in the past, with his brothers. It got old, fast. He would sooner stake his brothers then allow them to touch her. And he certainly wouldn't deal with Stefan or Damon trying to come between them.

"Good, because I don't like to be shared," she replied lamely. She would make sure to talk with Damon and Stefan and let them know about the change in her relationship with Elijah before telling the others. It was the least that she owed them. "I know that it may be hard to do, but you can trust me."

Elijah smiled sadly. "It's nothing against you," he excused. "I just find it difficult to let people in. It's a work in progress."

She returned his smile. "That's okay, we are too."

* * *

The End


End file.
